


rotogram addict

by allechant



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: F/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-05-04
Packaged: 2021-02-22 23:28:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23668765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allechant/pseuds/allechant
Summary: she never understood why people were so obsessed with Raihan's rotogram. it was just a bunch of pictures, right? sure, he was cute and everything, but he also had an ego the size of Wyndon Stadium and nope, there were no feelings, none whatsoever.
Relationships: Kibana | Raihan/Yuuri | Gloria
Comments: 22
Kudos: 106





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm absolute Raihan trash. I kind of ship him with Gloria but I don't see a lot of works with that pairing so I'm going to write my own. Gloria and Hop are eighteen, Raihan, Sonia and Leon are maybe five years older.
> 
> Might eventually turn smutty? But keeping it rated T for now.

If there was just _one_ person in the entire Pokemon League who could get under her skin, it had to be Raihan.

Yes, he was kind of cocky, but that wasn't the main issue. Gloria was perfectly fine with people being confident in their own abilities, and Raihan had more than earned the respect of Galar's pokemon trainers. He wasn't called the most powerful Gym Leader and the tamer of dragons for nothing.

But did he always have to keep posting all those selfies on Rotogram? She huffed, ignoring yet another notification from the stupid app as it popped up on her Rotom Phone. She was busy enough trying to cycle through the Wild Area without accidentally crashing into a tree or something – Gloria was kind of embarrassed to admit it, but she didn't have fantastic control over her bike.

"Gloria, you gotta stop looking at your phone or you're going to miss out on rare pokemon!" Hop yelled from in front of her. She slipped her phone back in her pocket, wondering how he had managed to notice when he was tearing away through the field, practically a blur.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" she called, putting her all into cycling. She might be Galar's newest champion and the one who finally toppled Leon from his throne, but that didn't mean she had gotten any faster on her bicycle. Hop had cycled all the way to a bridge and was now waiting for her as she pedalled towards him, a look of amusement on his face.

"I see a den! Think there would be anything good inside?" Hop pointed out when she reached him, panting a little from the exertion. She glanced in the direction he indicated and raised an eyebrow, surprised – she had been too distracted by Rotogram earlier, but now she could see the giant ray of purple light shooting up into the sky, dark clouds encircling the pillar. It wasn't just any old den – there was probably some rare pokemon inside. Maybe even a Gigantamax one.

"No harm taking a look! It'd be good for your research too, right?" she asked. Hop beamed. Ever since Hop started helping out at Sonia's lab and decided he wanted to continue Professor Magnolia's research into dynamax, he had been going to the Wild Area almost daily, on the lookout for Gigantamax pokemon. Hop reasoned that if working with Dynamax pokemon all this time hadn't led to much, then maybe it was time to start looking even further, and who was she to disagree with the professor's assistant?

Besides, now that she was champion, there were so many official duties she needed to handle, and it was nice to just escape from work once in a while and accompany her old friend to do something she actually enjoyed. Leon was really good at guiding her along, though admittedly he could be a little absentminded, and he told her that whenever she needed a break, he could step in to cover for her. She was making good use of that, sneaking out to the Wild Area whenever her responsibilities permitted it.

The den was getting closer, and Gloria's heart rate was going up – partially from the strenuous exercise, but also because it had been a good, long while since she last had any kind of pokemon battle, and she missed the thrill of working together with her partner pokemon. The past week had been spent with the other Gym Leaders figuring out a way to streamline gym operations and reduce expenses, and to tell the truth, work like that just flew right over her head.

"Excited?" Hop called, grinning at her. She nodded, gnawing on her lip, the pillar of purple almost blinding up close. She had to wonder what pokemon was hiding in the den this time. They were quite close to the lake, so she was hoping for Gigantamax Lapras. But anything would do, really. She was itching to get all this pent-up energy out of her system.

Heck, she'd even clear the Battle Tower again if she had to. But she simply didn't have the time. "Hey, wait. There's a camp right there! You don't think there's someone already in the den, do you?" Hop came to an abrupt halt in front of her, some distance away from the den. Gloria stopped as well, seeing the same tent Hop was pointing to. She squinted a bit – the tent was orange and blue, which were _very_ familiar colours, and she suddenly had a very strong suspicion who might be the owner of the tent.

"I think we should go." It wasn't like Gloria hated him or anything. Nope, she most certainly did not. She got along well with the entire League, even Bede, though Bede had taken a while to warm up to her and could still be a prickly asshole at times. But it was pretty funny watching how Bede reacted around Opal. She was like his strict grandma or something.

She just didn't think it would do her any good to bump into him _now_ , after that shirtless photo he posted on Rotogram just this morning. It would be awkward. Not for him, but most definitely for her. But Hop just looked at her, confused, and she wondered if there was a way for her to explain her rationale without it sounding outright weird.

"We're already here, and it's so rare to see a pillar like this! Who knows when our next opportunity will come along?" Hop asked, clearly trying to change her mind. She sighed. She knew he was right – she just really, _really_ didn't want to bump into that guy right now. "We can just go take a look. Whoever they are, they'd probably be okay with fighting alongside you. Not everyone gets a chance to battle with the champion, you know."

Gloria couldn't say no to the pleading look in Hop's golden eyes. It would feel like kicking a puppy. Heaving another sigh, she got off her bike, leaving it close to the tent. She and Hop approached the den, and when they reached the entrance, they saw a familiar figure leaning against the wall, posing for a selfie with his Rotom Phone. Gloria sighed for the third time. She was absolutely right.

"Hey, Raihan!" Hop greeted the dragon-type Gym Leader, who looked up at the sound of Hop's voice, surprise on his face. His teal gaze landed on them and he grinned, waving his phone away. "Glad to see _you_ out of Hammerlocke Stadium for once." Hop walked right up to the Gym Leader, clearly comfortable around him. Gloria hung a little further back, kicking at the grass with her boot. She wished she could be _that_ easy-going around Raihan, but then again, Hop probably didn't use Rotogram often enough to notice Raihan's extremely questionable account.

"Great to see you, Hop. And little miss champ herself!" Raihan whistled. "I'd ask what you two were doing out in the Wild Area, but I could already guess. A beauty, isn't it?" They all turned to look at the active den behind Raihan, and Gloria had to grudgingly agree. You'd never be able to see the glowing coloured light of an active den outside of the Wild Area.

"Did you manage to take a look?" Hop asked, leaning over the den and peering inside. Gloria doubted he could see anything – the pokemon usually hid pretty deep inside. If there was one thing she didn't like about raids, it was the journey in and out of the den. "Hope it's a Gigantamax pokemon. I really need to make some headway with my research."

Raihan shook his head. "Isn't it more fun when it's a surprise?" he asked, and Gloria caught herself glancing at the Gym Leader again, her gaze alighting on his prominent trademark canine. He had a cute smile. Not that she would ever admit it. There was no need to feed Raihan's already overblown ego.

"I guess so…” Hop shrugged. “Let’s go then – what are we waiting for, right?” He cracked his knuckles, clearly ready to get down to business. But Gloria cleared her throat, catching the attention of the other two.

“We need four people for a Max Raid, remember?” she reminded them. “With you, me and Raihan, that means we still need one more person. Unless we’re okay with some random dude crashing our raid.” Raihan and Hop exchanged a look. Gloria carried on. “Or we could invite the other Gym Leaders, but I don’t think –”

“Ah, nah. I’d rather not,” Raihan interrupted. “I got into a really dumb argument with Nessa the other day and I’m pretty sure she’s complaining about me to the others right now, so I kind of want the whole thing to blow over first.”

Somehow, it was not surprising that Raihan had gotten into a dumb argument with Nessa. Or with anyone, for that matter. Gloria knew he was smart – he was the only Gym Leader who actively made use of weather effects to give himself an advantage during battles – but he was also so – so…her words failed her.

“Guess the random trainer it is, then,” Gloria muttered. Looking around, she saw a girl in the distance who looked eerily like her, just with long black hair instead of her short brown bob. Sending an invite via her phone, within minutes the girl was at the den and they headed in, wondering what pokemon they would find this time.

* * *

“That was _amazing_ ,” Hop gushed, still tossing his newly-caught Sandaconda from one hand to the other. The girl hadn’t been interested in the Sandaconda – apparently, she had been looking for Milcery, and she claimed she already had a couple of Gigantamax Sandacondas in her box – and Gloria figured Hop needed the pokemon more than she did. While all Raihan wanted, evidently, was a selfie.

This actually explained the random photos of sandstorms he occasionally posted. Not that she was paying any particular attention to Raihan’s Rotogram. She just couldn’t help but notice that because it was so weird. “Are you heading back to the lab now, Hop?” Gloria asked, hoping he could still hang out a while longer.

“Yeah, I have work to do.” He laughed, patting her on the shoulder. “Come on, don’t look so disappointed! You can still explore the Wild Area without me. Lee is covering your champion duties for you, right?” She nodded. “There you go. Besides, maybe you can teach Raihan a thing or two about beating Lee!”

She gasped, hoping that Hop’s blasé words hadn’t offended the Gym Leader or anything, but Raihan seemed entirely unbothered, sitting outside his tent in front of an empty pot. He had let his team out of their pokeballs, and they were crowding around him now, clearly hoping for some curry. Gloria sighed. “Fine, Hop. Good luck with your research!” she called, waving as Hop got onto a Flying Taxi.

Gloria continued to watch as the Corviknight flew away, wondering what she ought to do now. She was used to being in the Wild Area, especially by herself, but she had never spent time with _Raihan_ on her own before. Then again, she supposed there could be a first time for everything.

Raihan was stirring his pot, which now had curry bubbling away inside it, but he looked up when she approached, a lazy grin on his face. “Hungry?” he asked. “I make a pretty mean curry if I can say so myself. You can ask Flygon here.” He nodded at his pokemon, who just fluttered his wings in response. Flygon was a gorgeous pokemon and pretty powerful too – she had yet to catch a Trapinch, but she was determined to do so one of these days.

“What did you put inside your curry?” she asked. She could smell its fragrance from here, and it made her wonder if it tasted anywhere as good as it smelled. Raihan continued stirring, but he looked up in thought, using his free hand to count.

“Spice mix…and a couple of berries.” He grinned. “You’ll like it, trust me. I’ve never met a trainer who didn’t like my curry!”

“You say that like you cook for lots of people.” She settled next to him, watching as he lifted his spoon to his mouth, taking a quick sip. He considered for a moment, then picked up another berry and tossed it inside the pot – she thought it was an Enigma berry, but she couldn’t be sure because they were pretty rare and she wasn’t entirely familiar with what they looked like.

“Well, sometimes we have potlucks and we’re all expected to bring some food. Maybe you’ll get to attend one of them soon,” he chuckled, tapping his spoon against the pot. “Why don’t you let your pokemon out? I’m sure they’re hungry after that battle with the Sandaconda.” He tasted the curry again and nodded this time, looking satisfied with its taste.

Gloria let her party pokemon out of their pokeballs, watching as they frolicked with each other in the grass. She smiled, watching them. This was her team – the team that had brought her through the entire Gym Challenge, the team which helped her take down Eternatus, the pokemon which helped her secure the championship. They fought and breathed in sync, and she adored them – it was nice to see them playing with each other, and she was reminded of when they were all still young and unevolved, just newly added to her team. How far they had come.

Inteleon wandered over to Raihan’s curry pot, looking curious. “Are you hungry?” she asked, startled. She had just given her team some curry earlier in the day. “You just ate, though!” Inteleon looked sullenly at her, and Raihan laughed – it was a rich, deep sound, and she felt a little shiver run through her. She tried to ignore it.

“Told you,” he gloated. “ _No one_ can resist my curry. Do you have a bowl? Think I’m done.” He tapped the spoon against the pot once more, and Gloria rifled through her backpack, looking for her dishes and utensils. She pulled out a plate and gave it to the Gym Leader, and he scooped out a generous helping of curry for her. Pairing it with some rice, she took a deep breath and sighed – it did smell heavenly.

She fed Inteleon first since he kept lingering around the pot, casting Raihan hopeful looks. Inteleon looked extremely pleased as he ate the curry, and she found herself wondering just how good could it be – among her entire party, Inteleon was the fussiest eater, and he only ever looked that pleased with Copperajah Class curry at the minimum. Gloria rarely ever achieved Charizard Class, much to Inteleon’s chagrin.

“Here’s yours.” Raihan handed her a plate heaped with curry, and hesitantly she took hold of the spoon, giving the curry a sniff. Pure, concentrated flavour hit her nose, and her eyes widened in surprise, intrigued by the smell. It was rich and mysterious and there was a simmering hint of spice, but since it didn't smell overwhelmingly spicy, she figured she could handle it. Either way, these were not berries she had used before in her own cooking. Carefully, she scooped up some rice with the curry and placed the spoon in her mouth, savouring the taste.

The first bite was both pain and pleasure. She sucked in a deep breath, hurriedly fanning her face as the spiciness of the curry assaulted her senses. Raihan scooped out more curry for his pokemon, but he was watching her, and he looked extremely amused. Gloria was not the biggest fan of spicy food, and Raihan’s cooking made her want to plunge her face headfirst into the nearest lake. But even she had to agree, as she reached for her water bottle and gulped down all the water she had, that the curry had a unique, almost addictive flavour profile that made her crave another bite. But maybe after she managed to cool off her burning mouth.

How was Inteleon eating his curry so calmly? She didn’t understand. Raihan was outright laughing now, watching her as she beckoned to her pokemon, asking him to use Snipe Shot on her. “Aw, c’mon Gloria, it’s not that spicy,” he teased.

“Shut up, Raihan. Just shut up.” She spared him a glare before she opened her mouth and Inteleon blasted blessed, cool streams of water at her face. She ended up soaking wet but it was worth it – at least it no longer felt like Hell’s inferno on her tongue. Her lips had gone numb by this point, but bravely – or perhaps stupidly – she picked up another spoonful of curry and stuck it resolutely in her mouth.

Raihan sighed. “You never learn, do you?” he asked, watching as Gloria ran to her Inteleon again, her face turning red. She could swear Inteleon rolled his eyes, but he did as she requested, hosing her down with water once more. At this point, she might as well just jump into the lake, but her pokemon was significantly nearer.

“I admit it. Your curry is good. I just can’t deal with spice,” Gloria moaned, clutching her tummy. Raihan had taken the curry away after her second mouthful, and Gloria was now squatting in front of the fire in an attempt to dry her clothes, shivering as the spiciness slowly wore off and the chill set in. Her Arcanine was close by, but she didn’t dare ask him to use any of his moves to help her out of fear he would set the entire place on fire. Maybe she shouldn’t have made him forget Ember.

“Next time, I’ll make a non-spicy curry especially for you, miss champ.” Raihan was petting Flygon’s head, and the pokemon had his eyes half-lidded, clearly enjoying the attention. “Leon sucked at eating spicy food too, at first. But he got used to it.”

“Really? That…that would be nice,” Gloria admitted, feeling a little embarrassed. Raihan just smirked at her, but for once the lazy smile seemed more charming than annoying to her, and feeling a little confused, she looked away from the Gym Leader. “So, how long did you and Leon know each other?” she asked, changing topics.

“Since we were kids. We were from the same batch of Gym Challengers, actually. He was always a bit of an idiot, getting lost all the time. He’s lucky Sonia was there.” Raihan shook his head. “Who would have thought he’d ever become the champion?”

Gloria just stared into the fire, wondering whether Raihan was disappointed that she beat Leon before he had a chance to. Everyone knew that Raihan wanted to beat the champ – they were rivals, after all. “Not to say you’re no good, Gloria.” She heard Raihan speak, and she lifted her gaze, meeting his teal eyes. He looked serious for once. “You beat all the Gym Leaders, you saved Galar, and you knocked the unbeatable champ off his pedestal. I’d say you’re pretty damn good yourself.”

“Thanks, I guess?” It came out sounding more like a question than a statement, and she winced. Raihan just chuckled, and they sat there together in silence, him eating his curry, her just waiting for her clothes to dry. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, and it was almost deafening.

“Well, it’s been a long day. It was fun running into you and Hop, Gloria. Maybe we can go train together in the Wild Area sometime.” Raihan finished his curry and got up, his Flygon floating behind him. “I’m going to wash up, so you can go on and head back to Wyndon. I’m sure Leon is praying you’ll return to relieve him of his responsibilities soon. He was like you, you know. Hated all the administrative work.”

“You don’t look like you particularly enjoy it either,” she called to him, wrapping her arms around herself. Her clothes were a little drier, but not enough for her to feel comfortable. Arcanine snuggled against her, wrapping his fluffy tail around her ankles, and she felt slightly better. Raihan laughed in response, but he didn’t turn back. “We should stay and help him clean up, shouldn’t we? Since we ate his food,” she asked her pokemon. Her team seemed to agree.

She was cold, but her chest felt warm. It was a strange feeling. She glanced at the fire and at Raihan’s tent, then she sighed, leaning her cheek against her left knee. Helping Raihan clean up would only be the right thing to do. Besides, it was such a nice day – it would be a shame if she headed back to Wyndon this early.


	2. Chapter 2

“Oh? You’re still here.” Raihan sounded surprised, and Gloria looked up, still prodding the extinguished campfire with a stick.

“Yeah. It seemed kind of rude to just leave, you know? Especially since you fed me and my team.” Gloria got up from her squat, wincing as sensation suddenly rushed back into her legs. Her clothes were finally dry, though she was still sniffing a little. “We packed away the rest of your things if you don’t mind.”

“Nah, that’s real nice of you. Thanks.” Raihan looked curiously at her, and she turned away, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed. Maybe she should have just gone back to Wyndon, after all. “You going to stay in the Wild Area? I’m heading back to Hammerlocke. Managed to blow off enough steam for now.”

“Oh. I don’t know. Maybe. I’d feel bad for Leon though.” She paused. “Did something happen?” she asked, wondering if she came across as nosey. Raihan didn’t answer for a while – instead, he stuffed his clean plates and utensils back inside his bag, and Gloria waited in silence, kicking awkwardly at the grass.

“Not really. At least nothing you need to worry about,” he finally said, flashing her yet another toothy smile. “We can head back to Hammerlocke together if you want, just so you can stretch your legs. You’ve been cooped up in Wyndon for weeks.”

She was surprised he had noticed. Then again, he was part of the League. All of the Gym Leaders probably paid attention to what the champion was doing. “Yeah, it’s been pretty busy. I didn’t know there was so much work for the champion to do.”

Raihan’s smile became something more like a smirk. “Why, are you thinking about giving up the championship already?” he asked. “I’m right here, you know. Ready whenever you are.”

She rolled her eyes, unable to help herself, though she felt her lips curving upwards. “In your dreams, Raihan.”

“It was worth a shot.” He slung his bag over his shoulders, then glanced back at her. “I’m walking to Hammerlocke. Could use a little more fresh air before I go back to the stadium. You coming with?”

“Sure, why not?” She fell into step beside him, and for a while, neither of them said a word. Gloria kept her gaze fixed straight ahead, stubbornly refusing to look in his direction. She didn’t want to suddenly think about what he’d look like without his shirt on though, given his Rotogram, she didn’t need to _imagine_ anything.

It must be the hormones. Raihan was attractive, yes. She had found him attractive ever since she saw him battling Leon during the exhibition match. But c’mon. No matter how good-looking he was, surely there ought to be a line drawn somewhere. There were _little kids_ following Raihan on Rotogram, for goodness sake.

“Hey, miss champ?” She heard Raihan call out to her, and a little reluctantly she turned her head, looking at him. To her surprise, he wasn’t looking at her – instead, he was staring in the direction of the Lake of Outrage. “I think I saw something. Let me just go over there real fast. One sec!” He turned, shot her a wink, and headed towards the tall grass. Gloria wondered whether she ought to follow, but Raihan was gone incredibly quickly, and she doubted she could catch up with him.

As always, the weather in the Wild Area was unpredictable – it looked like it was raining at the Lake of Outrage. She sighed, a little reluctant to get wet since she had finally managed to dry off, but she went ahead anyway, keeping her gaze focused on Raihan’s orange headband in the distance. She saw him send out his Flygon – Flygon used Dragon Claw, and right after that Raihan threw a pokeball.

The whole thing was over by the time Gloria reached them, crossly shielding her face from the rain. Raihan waved at her, holding the pokeball in his hand – she glanced at it, wondering what he had captured. “You didn’t need to follow me, you know. Since you already got hosed down by Inteleon earlier,” he said.

Well, it was a bit late for that. “What’s in there?” She nodded at his hand. Raihan grinned, studying the black and yellow Ultra Ball in his grip. The smile on his face made her feel like there was a lump in her throat.

“A real cutie.” Raihan released the captured pokemon, and Gloria cooed when she saw a familiar purple blob press itself into the ground, its antennae quivering. It looked frightened, but Raihan crouched towards the Goomy, slowly stretching out his hand. The Goomy watched, then tentatively inched towards him, relaxing a little.

“Don’t you already have a Goodra, though?” Gloria wondered. She didn’t consider most dragon pokemon to be particularly adorable, but Goomy was an exception. Even its final evolution, Goodra, looked very squishy and _very_ huggable.

“Yeah. I can’t resist these little fellas, though. And they’re built like a tank.” Raihan glanced up at her, one of those roguishly charming smiles on his face again, and she felt her chest tighten. “You don’t have one, do you? Why don’t you keep him?”

“You’re giving Goomy to me?” she asked, wondering if she was hearing things. She would never have pegged Raihan, of all people, as the kind to give pokemon away. Like, he was nice but not _that_ nice. Raihan shrugged, glancing down at the Goomy.

“What do you say, buddy?” he asked, tilting his head towards Gloria. “You want to follow her?” The Goomy seemed to study her for a moment, then she watched in disbelief as it crawled over to her, looking like it did actually want to join her party.

“You must want something out of this, Raihan,” she accused, though she kept her tone light. The Goomy reached her ankle, and she knelt down to hesitantly pet the pokemon – it was gooey and cool, but also surprisingly dense. Kind of like mochi. Her mind immediately started going through various possible strategies, trying to work out how to incorporate her new team member into her battle style.

Gloria didn’t think Raihan was a bad person – she just figured he wasn’t the kind to do something for nothing. Raihan tapped his finger thoughtfully against his chin. “I guess I do have one condition. The next time I challenge you at the tournament, you have to use that Goomy against me,” Raihan declared. “I want to see whether you’d be able to beat me using my own type.”

His challenge set off the competitive streak she had in her – Gloria was generally easy-going with most things, but when it came to pokemon battles, she played to win. “You’re going to regret that, Raihan,” she couldn’t help but tease, and Raihan just smirked back, tossing Goomy’s Ultra Ball at her. Thankfully she didn’t drop it, and she looked down at the pokeball in her hands – it was still warm from his touch.

“Okay, let’s head back then. I’m looking forward to seeing how that Goomy will grow under your care.” His smile turned warm and she quickly glanced away from him, looking down at Goomy instead. Ugh. Seeing that little canine just made her feel weird. _Think sobering thoughts, Gloria. Like how he’s basically polluting the minds and eyes of little children with all those racy selfies he’s always taking._

Yeah, that was more like it. “The last one to Hammerlocke treats the other to curry!” Gloria yelled, doing the first thing that came to mind in a bid to distract herself from her thoughts. She immediately sprinted off in the direction of the stairs, but had probably only run for half a minute before Raihan bounded past her on his long legs, somehow still able to turn around and make a face at her.

In hindsight, racing Raihan, the tallest in the Pokemon League, the one who practically towered over her when she stood beside him, was a pretty bad idea. Gloria resigned herself to losing, but at least this managed to get her mind off things.

* * *

Raihan was gloating when she caught up to him at the stairs, but he decided not to claim his curry treat, saying that watching her attempt to eat his cooking had provided him with more than enough entertainment.

“Glad to know I’m your personal jester,” Gloria muttered, still panting a bit from all the running. Raihan looked perfectly fine, and she wondered if beating Leon had caused her to let herself go. It had only been a few months since she became the new champion, but she had been so caught up with all the work and her boring administrative duties that she hardly had time to go out anymore. She felt… _weak_.

“I _do_ find you genuinely funny if that’s any consolation.” Nope, it wasn’t. Gloria fanned herself, staring up at the giant castle that was Hammerlocke Stadium. Raihan looked back at her when she paused in front of the entrance, gaze flitting over the imposing stone walls. “What? You’ve forgotten how the stadium looks like?”

“No…it just brings back memories.” She shook her head. The underground power plant where she fought and captured Eternatus was right there. And this was where she got the final badge she needed to complete the Gym Challenge and move on to the Wyndon Champion Cup. She smiled wistfully. It didn’t feel like that long ago when she was still a starry-eyed young trainer, looking up to all the Gym Leaders and to Leon, the reigning champion. The times sure had changed.

“You make yourself sound old.” Raihan tipped his head back to look at the stadium too, sounding thoughtful. “It’s been a while since I stood here and just looked at the castle, you know. Kind of strange, seeing it from here. Since I’m usually training inside and everything.” He paused. “Fancy a double battle?” he asked.

Gloria blinked, turning to look at the Gym Leader. “That’s sudden,” she said, unsure if she should take him up on that offer. She definitely wanted to – battling in a Max Raid and battling against an actual trainer were two very different things. And that Max Raid alone hadn’t been quite enough to settle her itch for a good fight. But she had responsibilities, and she couldn’t keep asking Leon to cover her champion duties while she waltzed around Galar, doing as she pleased.

Raihan raised an eyebrow. “We can make it a quick one. Battle Tower rules, how about that? No using of items on our pokemon.” He looked so hopeful that Gloria wavered, but right before she could make a decision her phone started to ring. She picked it up and saw that Leon was calling her.

“No, not today. Maybe another time.” She shook her head, picking up the call. “Hey, Leon. What is it? Yeah, I’m at Hammerlocke – going to take a Flying Taxi back soon. I’m fine! The Wild Area was pretty tame today.” _I gotta go_ , she mouthed at Raihan, gesturing at the phone pressed to her ear. Raihan waved her off, though he looked pretty disappointed. She covered the phone with her hand. “Next time we can have a battle, I promise!” she whispered before she turned and hurried away.

“You know, there’s a _lot_ of paperwork on your desk – you really haven’t been following up on things, have you?” Leon was saying as Gloria searched for a taxi. Why did the taxis only ever seem to appear when she wasn’t actually in need of one?

“I’m sorry, I was just procrastinating,” she huffed, finally spotting a Corviknight next to the pokemon centre. She rushed over, getting onto the taxi before someone else could snatch it away from her. “To Wyndon Stadium, please,” she told the cabbie, and off they went. “Leon, it’s such a _chore_. I have no idea how you could handle it.”

“Through sheer determination and willpower,” the former champion deadpanned. Gloria laughed. If there was one thing she and Leon had in common, it was their hatred of miscellaneous champion duties. Gloria just wanted to have fun with her team and engage in exciting pokemon battles with different trainers. She did not want to be the person officiating matches and events, giving interviews, attending galas, brainstorming national plans…she wasn’t comfortable with these things.

She wasn’t naturally charismatic, not like Leon, not like Raihan, and she always felt painfully awkward when people shook her hand and asked for an autograph. Part of her still felt like the clueless girl who left Postwick with a Sobble in tow, going along with her best friend and neighbour on a grand journey to hopefully become Galar’s newest champion. She missed those times. Things felt so much easier back then.

“Leon, will I ever be as comfortable in front of the camera as you are? Or the rest of the Gym Leaders?” she sighed. “Even Allister has more camera presence than I do, and he’s so _shy_. Don’t even mention Nessa or Raihan.” Raihan again. He was on her mind a lot lately, goodness knows why. Must be his Rotogram. She should delete that app. She hadn’t even wanted to make an account in the first place, but Leon told her that everyone who was part of the League had to maintain social accounts to connect with their fans, so she had grudgingly set up whatever she needed to.

She hardly even posted on her own Rotogram, though she had taken to scrolling through it at least once a day – it was a mindless activity that helped her procrastinate when she was stuck behind a desk, forced to do administrative things. Gloria mostly followed the other League members, plus Hop and Piers. Raihan was part of that list, and at first, she hadn’t paid him any attention. But that was only until she realised that most of her daily feed was usually taken up by Raihan’s selfies.

That realisation was abruptly followed by another one – that for every five pictures Raihan posted, at least one would feature him without his shirt on. And that around once every two weeks, he would post a random photo showing nothing but a sandstorm. The sandstorm picture usually didn’t come with any caption, either.

How Raihan managed to get so many likes on each photo despite how often he posted was beyond her. Even the weird sandstorm ones got loads of likes, with his fans speculating on the possible symbolism of the sandstorm in the comments. She only knew this because Marnie pointed it out once – it wasn’t like Gloria actively stalked him or anything. She didn’t have the time or the interest for that.

Leon snorted. “Raihan? He’s a slave to the camera, and he sure is proud of it.” But there was affection in Leon’s words and she smiled, knowing the two men had a solid friendship. Despite being rivals, they always had each other’s backs, and both Raihan and Leon spoke of each other with a great deal of respect. At least most of the time. “You’ll get there, Gloria. It’s not easy at first, but like everything else, you get used to it. Soon enough you’ll have your own special pose!” he exclaimed.

“I think I’ll pass on any special poses, Lee.” The mere thought of it was enough to make her cringe. Leon mumbled something about her being a spoilsport, but she ignored him. She sighed, watching the clouds go past as the Flying Taxi brought her steadily towards Wyndon. Despite not saying a word, the silence between them was comfortable. Leon was good at getting people to relax and let their guards down. She had been a little stiff around him at first, but now she hardly thought twice about chatting with him. It probably helped that he was Hop’s older brother.

“Hey, Lee?” she asked. Leon made a sound of assent, though he seemed a little distracted – probably looking through her undone paperwork. “Did you ever date before? I mean, you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to,” she quickly added, feeling flustered – the question had slipped out without her thinking. “Just curious.”

“Oh?” Leon sounded surprised. “I _have_ gone on dates before if that’s what you’re asking. Why? Someone caught your attention?” he teased. Gloria rolled her eyes. Leon was one of the top trainers in Galar and he had a powerful presence few could match, but at the end of the day he was still Hop’s brother and he had quickly taken to teasing her the same way Hop did. “But yeah. Why, what about them?”

“How do you know if you like someone or if you just find them really distracting?” She frowned. She wasn’t asking this with anyone particular in mind, just – well. She felt like this was something she needed to know. She could hear Leon chuckle.

“Whatever relationship you have Gloria, it sure sounds complicated,” he said. She didn’t answer, and Leon suddenly exhaled – she could sense he was getting serious, and she gripped the phone a little tighter. “I don’t think I can give you a clear answer on that. Relationships, in general, aren’t black and white. If you like someone you’re probably going to find them distracting, but that doesn’t mean that vice-versa is true. It’s something you’ll probably just have to figure out on your own.”

Leon sounded wistful. She wondered who he was thinking about. “That’s real helpful advice.” Gloria herself couldn’t tell if she was being sarcastic or not.

“Hey, it’s better than nothing,” Leon defended himself, and Gloria absentmindedly agreed, looking around her. She could tell they were fast approaching Wyndon. The Battle Tower loomed in the distance, as distinctive a landmark as ever.

“I’m reaching Wyndon. Chat later.” She exchanged goodbyes with Leon and hung up, placing her phone back inside her pocket. Her fingers brushed against her pokeballs, and she paused, drawing out the Ultra Ball Raihan had given to her. Her new Goomy was inside, and she smiled, wondering what she ought to do with it. Maybe she should let him get familiar with her office and new home first, then she would help him get properly acquainted with the rest of her team. Yeah, baby steps.

She had never really trained a dragon-type pokemon before - unless Gyarados counted. She heard stories about how temperamental and demanding dragon pokemon could be, and how they refused to listen to trainers unless the trainer could prove their strength and worth. People respected Raihan because he was able to capture and bond with one of the most stubborn pokemon types out there, and Gloria was determined to do the same. As the champion, she wouldn’t fail.

“I can’t wait to beat Raihan at his own game,” she mused, rubbing her thumb across the Ultra Ball. He had issued her a challenge after all, and Gloria was never one to back down from a challenge.


	3. Chapter 3

“Did you ever consider getting a, you know…a secretary?” Leon suggested, watching as Gloria flipped through several folders on her desk, looking for that _one_ document she needed to sign.

Most of the letters left on her desk today were from aspiring trainers hoping to receive an endorsement from the champ. When she first started out, she _did_ actually make an effort to write back to these trainers and ask them to show her their potential, but nowadays there were simply so many letters that Gloria couldn’t keep up.

“But I’d have to put up a job posting, right? Then I’d need to interview the applicants and everything?” Gloria sighed, digging through another stack of documents. She really ought to clean up her desk. Goomy oozed happily around the room, poking his nose into every nook and cranny, and Leon glanced at her new pokemon, a wondering look on his face.

“Yeah, but it’d be worth it. A secretary is supposed to help keep your schedule in order, arrange your agenda and pass you the exact documents you need at any given moment. Basically, they make your work easier, and you won’t have to fumble around looking for things,” Leon explained.

Gloria was only half-listening – she had found a recipe printout for decorative curry, which she didn’t have registered in her Curry Dex. Why was it here, though? Did she print the recipe and forget about it? Actually, that was probably what happened. “You’re not listening to me, are you?” Leon grumbled.

She dropped the printout. “Sorry!” She grinned, clasping her hands together and trying to look as attentive as she could. Leon shook his head, though he didn’t look annoyed. Hard for someone as absentminded as Leon to scold her for not listening, anyway.

“You caught that Goomy in the Wild Area?” Leon asked, looking at her new pokemon again. She nodded. A sudden vision of Raihan tossing her the Ultra Ball with that warm smile on his face floated through her mind, but she tried to ignore the memory. It was incredibly distracting. “I didn’t think you were particularly interested in dragon types, though.” He frowned. “And since when did you use Ultra Balls?”

Gloria’s pokemon were mostly housed in normal pokeballs because she got paranoid about running out of pokeballs early on during her journey and ended up buying way too many. She had yet to finish using them. “Just wanted to try a new line-up! And Goomy was being really difficult so I had to use a different ball. Why, is something wrong?”

Oh, if only her mother could see how easily the lie slipped out of her mouth. She would be so disappointed. “Oh, nothing. Just – well, it reminds me a lot of Raihan.” Leon paused, then shrugged, oblivious to how the mere mention of the Gym Leader made Gloria panic. Was it really that obvious? Should she be more careful about using Goomy in public?

She knew there was nothing wrong with receiving Goomy as a gift from Raihan, but she didn’t want any gossip about their possible relationship. There was no relationship. She was the champion, he was part of the Pokemon League. The end. But the tabloids were nasty things and she absolutely did not want to give them any material to work with.

“Well, I’m going to raise Goomy up so well that he’ll destroy Raihan’s team during the next tournament,” she declared, trying to get her mind back on track. Leon just blinked at her, clearly surprised by her announcement. “That’s right! I’m going to beat the dragon Gym Leader _using_ a dragon pokemon. Is that poetic justice or what?”

There was silence for a moment, then Leon suddenly began to laugh. She frowned at him, but it didn’t sound like he was mocking her – he just seemed amused. “I’m sorry, I’m not making fun of you or anything. It’s just that I’ve never seen anyone try to challenge Raihan using his own strengths before. That’s mighty bold of you, Gloria.”

She huffed, spinning Goomy’s Ultra Ball around on her desk. “Well, someone has to take his ego down a notch, and if being beaten by a dragon doesn’t do it, I don’t know what will.” She eyed the pokeball, the black and yellow blurring together as it spun around.

“I’m sure Raihan would enjoy that match greatly, no matter the result.” Leon grinned. “You know, ever since you became the champion, he’s been pretty insistent on battling you again. I think you’re his next goal. Though he’d still love to beat me once, I’m sure.”

She remembered his invitation for a double battle and sighed. “I don’t find that surprising. He’s all about defeating the champion, and that’s who I am now, so…” she paused. “We’ll just have to wait for the next tournament, I guess. Anyway, I wanted to ask – aren’t you supposed to be at the Battle Tower? You’re sure spending a lot of time here.”

“I’ll be notified if someone reaches my stage. It’s not that common, you know. And I’m here because I’m _concerned_ , Gloria. Just get a secretary already. It’s not that tough.”

Gloria groaned. “Leon, I thought pokemon training was tough in the beginning, but it’s nothing compared to this. I wasn’t meant for a desk-bound job. I didn’t _think_ being the champion would be a desk-bound job, but it really is!” she exclaimed.

Leon shook his head. “You know there are people who’d love to be sitting where you are now, right?” he asked. Gloria bit her lip, immediately ashamed. Right. She was the role model of trainers all across Galar, a dream, a goal and an aspiration. And yet here she was, whining about how difficult it was being at the top. When had she become so bratty?

His golden gaze softened a little when he saw the remorse on her face. “Okay, don’t look so disappointed. We all forget how far we’ve come, sometimes.” He patted her on the shoulder, and the weight of his hand was comforting. Sometimes, it felt like Leon might be the only person who could understand what she was going through. He probably was. “I’ll help you with hiring a secretary, how about that? I know technically this is your first job and you’re hopelessly lost, but believe me, with time you _will_ get better at things.”

Spoken like someone who had been the champion since he was ten years old. She might have defeated him, but she still had a lot of catching up to do. “Fine. I’ll go…put up a job posting or something.” She sighed, slumping over and pressing her cheek to her desk. “But first, how does one put up a job posting?” she asked, staring up at the ceiling.

Leon winced. “I guess I’ll just have to help you with that too.”

* * *

For some reason, the media had pounced on the fact that the champion was now looking for a secretary, and the next day that was what all the newspapers were talking about.

Gloria groaned. This was stupid. She was hiring someone to help her. It wasn’t like she lost her title, or she averted another crisis or, Arceus forbid, she got a boyfriend or _anything_. It must be a slow news day. “Marnie, why do tabloids keep stalking everything I do?”

“Because you’re the champion?” her friend suggested, licking her ice cream cone. Gloria hid her face underneath her hand as another person with a camera walked past the café. He looked more like a tourist than paparazzi, but she wasn’t taking any chances.

“I’m just a person, though. Wish they would spend more time breathing down Hop’s neck. His research deserves more attention.” She stabbed her spoon into her sundae, annoyed that she couldn’t enjoy her day out in peace. It wasn’t that easy to schedule a day where they could just come out and enjoy themselves, especially now that Marnie had replaced Piers as Spikemuth’s Gym Leader. And seeing her friend at League meetings just wasn’t quite the same.

“Hop avoids the paparazzi almost as much as you do. It’s been a few months, but they’re still asking if he’s disappointed that he lost the championship to you, or they ask questions like how you compare to Leon…it’s tough on him.” Marnie noted. Her face didn’t change, but Gloria could hear the sympathy in her voice. “He’s lucky the paps are scared of Sonia.”

Sonia was definitely a force to be reckoned with. Gloria smiled at the mention of the fiery redhead. “I feel like we should meet up one of these days. Just you, me and Hop. It’d be like our challenger days.”

Marnie raised an eyebrow. “Then shouldn’t you invite Bede, too? Can’t relieve our good old challenger days without having him butting in all the time, making trouble.” The two of them met each other’s gazes and burst out laughing at the same time. It was really nice to be chatting with Marnie again. She was so straightforward and no-nonsense; Gloria never had to worry about anything she said. Even if she messed up, Marnie would just point it out in a matter-of-fact way, she would rectify her slip up, and they would both move on.

“Speaking of Bede. Did you see the way Opal tore into him the other day when he was being a rude prick on national TV? Hilarious.” Marnie was now nibbling at her wafer cone. “You’d think he learnt his lesson by now. But seems like he’s still as standoffish as ever.”

Gloria shrugged. “To be honest, I can understand why he’s mean to reporters.” She would be too if she wasn’t so afraid of her image being torn apart by the public. People knew where she lived, and they knew who her friends were. She also knew exactly how terrible people could be. She didn’t want any of her actions to affect the people she cared about.

Marnie eyed Gloria over her ice cream cone. “Still doesn’t excuse his behaviour, though.” Gloria nodded, twirling her spoon in her sundae. It was half-melted. She had barely eaten her ice cream – after finding out how much buzz there was surrounding her job listing, she had lost her appetite. “Something on your mind, Gloria?”

“No, nothing. Just thinking about the price of fame.” Why would people willingly become famous? It didn’t make sense. Sure, being famous and well-liked meant the public loved you, and it opened many doors – but at the same time celebrities lost all sense of privacy. Their worlds were no longer their own. Everything they did was shared with an adoring fanbase, and sometimes those fans behaved like they were entitled to the celebrity’s time.

If she continued this way, would she eventually lose all sense of herself? She wanted to come to terms with her new reality, but she was still afraid. She was grateful that Leon and the League were always supporting her though, no matter how young and inexperienced she was. She wanted to do her best for all these people who had become her friends, and make sure that Galar’s trainers became the best in the world.

“You could wear a hat and sunglasses when you’re out in public,” Marnie suggested, and her face was so dead serious that Gloria couldn’t tell if she was joking or not.

“I already tried that, but it didn’t work, so I gave up. I appreciate the advice though.” The two girls entered a comfortable silence, and Gloria decided to at least _try_ and force down the ice cream. She had already paid for it and she was brought up to never waste food.

She felt her phone buzz and saw a message from Leon, telling her to go and check the job portal. Wrinkling her nose, she did as he said, logging in to the online platform where they had posted the job opening. She guessed that there would be loads of applications since everyone was talking about the role, but when she saw the number, she gasped – how were they supposed to sort through _this_ many applicants?

“What’s wrong?” Marnie asked. Her cone was almost entirely gone by now, and the Gym Leader was sipping delicately at her cup of tea.

“Marnie, I have over a thousand people applying for the secretary role,” Gloria leant in and whispered. “I have absolutely no idea how we’re going to screen all these people!”

“Oh.” Marnie’s eyes widened. “Well, good luck with that. But there would probably be League staff who can help you with this, right? They’re not doing anything much at the moment since it isn't championship season.”

“Yeah, that’s true. I guess I’ll ask and see if any of them can help me.” She squinted at the number of entries, wondering if she had misread things – nope, that was definitely a four-digit number. As she watched, the count increased by three.

They’d probably have to close the application window soon. She and Leon had agreed to leave the listing up for a week, but neither of them had anticipated so many sign-ups. She didn’t want to think about how many people would apply if they left the listing active for more than a day. She was about to text Leon and ask if they should take down the listing when her phone buzzed – another notification. This one was from Rotogram.

Instinctively her thumb reached for the notification, about to swipe it away, but she quickly read what it said and her eyes widened.

ROTOGRAM: @raihan tagged you in a post.

Raihan tagged her? Curious, she opened the app, looking for the post. It was a photo of him with his Goodra, both of them smiling for the camera. Her gaze lingered just a second too long on his easy smile and his little tooth, and she tore her eyes away, looking for the caption instead. It read, “ _looking forward to ur challenge, champ @gloria227”_.

She couldn’t help but smile. It was tempting to respond to his post, but she was mindful of everything she did in public. Given how much attention the media vultures were paying her, they would no doubt find a way to paint their exchange as some kind of illicit affair or something, and Gloria refused to fall into that trap. Maybe she’d text Raihan later…

No, no. What was she thinking? She should just ignore him. She didn’t want to associate with him, after all. He was a bad influence! “Did Raihan just tag you on Rotogram?” Marnie was staring at her phone too, scrolling through the app so quickly that Gloria wondered if she was actually looking at anything. “Didn’t know you two were friends.”

“No, we’re not. He wanted another battle with me, that’s all.” It was a half-truth. She didn’t want to talk about the Goomy he gave her or the condition he set, at least not in public. “Maybe he thinks I’ll get around to it quicker if he called me out on Rotogram.”

“You barely use Rotogram. It’s not exactly the best platform to get your attention.” Marnie glanced up from her screen. “Your face is kind of red, you know?”

“Oh, it’s just – it’s just hot in here, that’s all!” Gloria quickly scooped some melting ice cream into her mouth. Marnie frowned, clearly not quite believing her, but Gloria gave her a smile so wide that her cheeks hurt, and Marnie relented. “Maybe we can go check out the boutique, get some new clothes. You know, pamper ourselves a bit,” she babbled.

“That does sound like a good idea.” Marnie stood up, having finished the remnants of her tea. “Let’s go then. You’re clearly not going to finish that ice cream,” she commented, and Gloria looked down at the creamy mess that was formerly her sundae.

“Okay, let’s go.” She rose from the chair, looking carefully at her surroundings before they exited the café – Marnie was familiar with the back alleys and streets of Motostoke, and they managed to take a relatively secluded route to the boutique.

They spent some time trying on different outfits and deciding what to get. At the end of the visit, both of them had one bag in each hand, their wallets considerably lighter. Gloria beamed, feeling better – somehow, buying cute clothes never failed to cheer her up. “Is there anywhere else you want to go?” she asked Marnie, who was still looking at the boutique window, staring up at the dummies in the glass display.

“I was thinking of getting some new supplies. I’m running out of balls and potions, so might as well get them now since we’re already out shopping. Saves me another trip to the pokemon centre later.” Marnie tore her eyes away from the boutique.

“All right, let’s go!” Gloria headed towards the pokemon centre with Marnie in tow. Once they got there, Marnie made a beeline for the poke mart, and Gloria sat to wait for her, stretching out her legs. She looked around the pokemon centre – it was relatively quiet today, save for one kid using the Rotom PC. She hummed to herself, pleased with how peaceful everything was. Sure, she’d have to get back to Wyndon and sort through all those job applications later, but the keyword was _later_. She was going to relax and enjoy herself as much as she could in Motostoke.

The pokemon centre’s doors slid open, and Gloria looked at the entrance, observing the newcomer – the first thing she noticed was blue and orange, followed by the fact that this person was _very_ tall and he had his hands tucked in his hoodie, a familiar fang obvious whenever he smiled – she gasped. What was _Raihan_ doing in Motostoke?

She noticed that Raihan was talking to Kabu and guessed that the dragon Gym Leader was here for a social visit. Gloria looked nervously around her, wondering if she could hide somewhere. Maybe behind that potted plant. She didn’t feel quite ready to face Raihan, not after he tagged her – nope, interacting with Raihan required a level of nerve that she was presently lacking. Luckily for her, Kabu was taking up most of Raihan’s attention.

Gloria got off her chair and snuck behind said potted plant, hoping that the pot would be big enough to hide her from view. She was vaguely aware of how ridiculous she must look, but she didn’t have many options and she would take whatever she could get. Curling up with her arms around her knees, she tried to make herself as tiny as possible and prayed that she would somehow learn how to use minimise.

“Uh…Gloria? Is that you?” She heard Raihan’s voice and cursed quietly to herself, forcing a smile on her face as she looked up. Raihan and Kabu were both staring down at her. Raihan had a bemused look on his face, but Kabu, to his credit, managed to look entirely unsurprised. “What are you doing behind the plant?"

“Hi, Raihan!” She managed to clamber up from her hiding spot without stumbling or falling over. Thankfully. “And hi Kabu. Great to see you! Are you two discussing something? You don’t need to say hi to me, you know. I’m sure you’re both very busy!”

“No, we were just having a friendly chat. Raihan wanted to clarify something Nessa has apparently been saying about him.” Gloria couldn’t be absolutely sure, but she thought she saw Kabu’s mouth twitch. “Of course, I fully believe whatever he tells me.”

Was Kabu being sarcastic? She couldn’t tell, but what he said did remind her of the fact that Raihan and Nessa were currently not on the best of terms. “You never did mention what that argument was about, Raihan.” She was glad that Kabu had steered the topic away from what Gloria was doing, hiding behind a potted plant. She had to treat that man to lunch one day. Raihan sighed, rolling his teal eyes.

“She’s just being oversensitive. She told me she needed someone to model with her for her latest shoot and she asked if I wanted to go for it, and I said sure but who’s the female model and she said it was her, and I said, wow I didn’t know shrews were considered fashionable nowadays and I swear it was a _joke_ , but she’s telling everyone that I’m a total asshole who demeans women and I really don’t know what she’s going on about.”

Raihan said all this in pretty much one breath and Gloria blinked, taking a while to process the information. “So…you called her a shrew?” she asked, just to be sure. He nodded.

“And I emphasise again – it was a _joke_. Nessa’s too serious about everything. She needs to lighten up!” He threw his hands in the air. “And the last thing I need is all the other Gym Leaders siding with her. I am _not_ a women-demeaning asshole.” Raihan pouted.

Oh, that pout did weird things to her chest. She wondered if these were early symptoms of a heart attack – maybe she should go see a doctor? “Yes, I’m absolutely sure you are not, Raihan,” Kabu deadpanned. Gloria snickered, and Raihan shot her a look of betrayal.

“I thought you would be on _my_ side, Gloria,” he groaned.

Gloria shrugged. “I don’t take any sides. Why don’t you just go and say sorry to Nessa? You know how seriously she takes her modelling career. You probably hurt her feelings.”

“But it was just a joke,” Raihan muttered underneath his breath. Gloria and Kabu stared silently at him and finally, the dragon tamer relented. “Fine, fine. I’ll go say sorry to her. I’ll even bring her a bunch of stupid flowers or whatever while I’m at it,” he grumbled.

“See, that wasn’t so hard!” Gloria grinned. Raihan made a face but he didn’t complain any further. One thing she had to agree with him on, though – it _was_ a pretty silly argument.

“Oh hey, Kabu, Raihan. Good to see you.” She heard Marnie’s voice and saw the girl coming over from the poke mart counter. When she reached them, she inserted herself between Gloria and Raihan, and Gloria realised with a start exactly how close she had been to the other Gym Leader. She’d have to be more careful next time. “So, what did I miss?”


	4. Chapter 4

“Why don’t you just go say sorry to Nessa?” Marnie repeated the same thing everyone else had been thinking.

Raihan sighed. “Look, it’s not that simple, okay.” Gloria didn’t know how but the four of them had ended up going to grab a coffee. It was a nice day out in Motostoke – the sun was out, and it was _just_ the right temperature, neither too warm nor too cold.

“It’s just two words. I’m. Sorry. Can make it three, if you want.” Marnie held up a hand, counting with her fingers. “I. Am. Sorry. There, we’ve given you two options.”

That earned Marnie a glare. “I would probably go apologise to Nessa if I felt like I did anything wrong. Which, by the way, I don’t. _She_ should be the one saying sorry to me!”

“She didn’t do anything wrong either,” Gloria reasoned. “I mean, Kabu and Marnie didn’t know about this until you told them, right? Are you sure she told the entire League?” Gloria herself hadn’t heard anything about this from Nessa until Raihan brought it up.

Raihan stayed silent for a moment. Then he mumbled, “Well, Milo texted me about it…”

“That’s just Milo. Milo is not the entire League,” Marnie deadpanned.

“Why do I even bother talking to you guys?” Raihan muttered. Kabu was quietly listening to the whole exchange, and while he looked as stoic as ever, there was amusement in his eyes. Gloria wondered what he thought of the younger Gym Leaders and their personal problems. “Fine. I’m an idiot, okay?” He stirred his coffee. “I should go find Nessa.”

“Actually, I hardly see you two talking to each other,” Gloria commented. Come to think of it, Nessa and Raihan seemed to actively avoid each other during League meetings. She was surprised Nessa even invited Raihan to do a photoshoot with her.

Raihan seemed a bit fidgety. “Uh, there’s some history, but it’s nothing big. No beef or anything at least.” He paused. “Wow, isn’t this a great day to get some training done?”

If he wanted to change the subject, he could at least be a bit more subtle about it, but they let it go. “Yes, my Centiskorch has been itching for another battle. I think the Gym Challenge this season wasn’t quite enough for him.” Kabu took a sip of his tea. “I might have to bring him to the Wild Area to let him work off all that excess energy.”

“Oh, yeah. My Goodra too. She’s been a bit grumpy,” Raihan glanced at Gloria at the mention of the dragon pokemon, and Gloria self-consciously averted her gaze, looking down at her phone. “Wonder when the next tournament will be?”

“That’s up to Gloria, isn’t it? She can call for one whenever she wants.” Kabu looked at her, and she turned towards him, glad to have an excuse to _not_ talk to Raihan.

“I’m thinking of calling one next month. Things have been really hectic lately.” She eyed her milk tea, watching the condensation roll down the sides of the cup. Marnie had asked why she even bothered buying bubble tea when she didn’t want the pearls. Gloria didn’t like pearls. And yes, she knew her drink was essentially just tea with milk, but there was something different about ordering milk tea outside. It tasted better, somehow.

“I heard you’re looking for a secretary, yes?” Kabu commented. “Leon used to have one when he first started with his champion duties. He decided to handle his affairs on his own a few years later, but a secretary would be a great help if you are new to the working world.”

“Do you have a secretary?” Gloria asked. The thought of employing one still sounded surreal. In her mind, secretaries were for busy CEOs and corporate leaders, not for pokemon trainers like her. But then again, she wasn’t the typical pokemon trainer.

Kabu nodded. “Most of the Gym Leaders do. It allows us to focus more on the actual battling and how we can further develop the trainers under our care. Though Melony prefers to do everything on her own, from what I know.”

“I don’t have one either,” Marnie said, drinking her bubble tea as she spoke. Her pearls were almost gone. “Don’t really need one. Piers has been helping me a lot, at least when he isn’t organising concerts for his fans.”

Gloria looked at Raihan. The Gym Leader noticed her stare and raised an eyebrow at her. “Why, are you wondering if I have one?” he asked. “What do you think?”

“I feel like you do. Or you wouldn’t be able to get anything done,” Gloria answered him honestly, and Raihan sighed, rolling his eyes. Marnie held back a snort.

“Somehow I get the feeling that you’re making me out to be a lot less competent than I actually am,” he muttered, sounding almost offended, but there was a twinkle in his eyes and a small smile on his lips that implied otherwise. “I could go without a secretary if I really wanted to, but why make life difficult for myself?” He paused. “How’s your search so far, though? Did any of the applicants catch your eye?”

“I haven’t really taken a look. There were a lot of applicants, so I…kind of panicked. But I’ll look through all the candidates when I head back to Wyndon.” She took a sip of her drink, sighing contentedly as the smooth creamy taste of milk tea hit her tongue. “What are you supposed to look out for though, when it comes to hiring a secretary?” she wondered.

Kabu held up three fingers. “At the barest minimum, your secretary should be excellent at time management, people management and project management. If the person is incapable of doing any of the above, then they shouldn’t be working that closely with you. Remember that secretaries help take the administrative burden off your shoulders.” Kabu lowered his hand. “Actually, Chairman Rose’s secretary was highly competent.”

“Oleana?” Gloria thought about the blonde woman who was always by Chairman Rose’s side, helping him to execute his plan. They had battled once at the Rose Tower, and she remembered Oleana’s dedication to furthering Chairman Rose’s goals and ensuring everything went smoothly. Was that the mark of a great secretary, to have unwavering faith in their boss?

Anyway, despite her abilities, Oleana was cold and standoffish. Gloria recalled that the older woman hadn’t been particularly welcoming to either her or Hop when they were in Hulbury. Gloria wasn’t sure if she could, or _wanted_ , to work with someone so…distant.

“Yes, Oleana. I heard she’s now doing community service on the Chairman’s behalf in the Galar Mines. A good thing I suppose, since Rose still has two years of his sentence left to serve. Perhaps public opinion of him would improve by the time he’s released.” Kabu finished the rest of his tea, sliding the cup across the table. “It was nice seeing you all, but I’m afraid I have to get back to my Gym duties. I assume Gloria must be busy as well.”

“Oh! I guess, but I’m not rushing anywhere.” Gloria hesitated. “See you next time though, Kabu.” The Gym Leader nodded and left the café, the bell over the door jingling as he stepped out, leaving the three of them to just stare at each other.

Marnie cleared her throat. “I should get going too. Promised Piers I’d help him set up for rehearsal.” She looked at her watch. “Hope you manage to sort through all those job applications, Gloria. And Raihan, you _really_ should go to Hulbury and apologise.” Marnie added pointedly, and he just huffed, folding his arms across his chest. Marnie shook her head, but there was a small smile on her face, and she waved to Gloria as she walked out.

Now it was just her and Raihan, and Gloria swallowed, feeling extremely conscious of the fact that they were alone. She glanced at him – Raihan was scrolling through his phone and she thought about the photo he had tagged her in. She suddenly wondered if he was on Rotogram. “Do you need to go somewhere too?” she asked, just to break the silence.

“Not really. It’s my day off today.” Raihan’s gaze was still on his phone.

“Weren’t you off yesterday?” Gloria frowned. He had been in the Wild Area, after all. And generally, being in the Wild Area did not constitute part of a Gym Leader’s regular duties.

“I have two off days a week.” Raihan put his phone down, looking at her with a little smirk on his face. She felt her stomach flip and wondered why her body was reacting so weirdly. It was just Raihan smiling at her. Raihan, the tamer of dragons and Galar’s unquestioned king of Rotogram. She really had to stop _overreacting_ to everything he did. “I know the other Gym Leaders usually take weekends off, but sometimes I _like_ to work weekends, so instead I just take two days off whenever I want within the week.”

“I see.” Maybe she could do that. It sounded a lot more flexible than her current schedule – she took short breaks whenever she got too overwhelmed, but other than that being the champion was a full-time job. While she didn’t hate all of it, sometimes she wished she had more time for herself. “What do you normally do on your days off?” she asked.

Raihan shrugged. “Whatever I feel like doing. Meet old friends. Camp in the Wild Area. Stay home and play video games. Anything, really.” He looked curiously at her. “What do _you_ do on your off days, miss champ?”

She hesitated. In truth, she couldn’t remember the last time she was able to take a proper day off. Even the few hours she spent with Marnie today, or heading out to the Wild Area yesterday – she could do all these only because Leon was willing to step in for her. If he wasn’t there, she would just have to stay in Wyndon, planning events, drafting speeches, meeting important people. What few precious hours she could carve out from her busy timetable was spent on the bare necessities – eating, bathing, sleeping, playing with her pokemon so that they wouldn’t get lonely. Leon had been an absolute rock throughout these tumultuous months, but she knew she couldn’t rely on his help forever.

Even now she recalled she had a speech to finish drafting and rehearsing for this weekend. The League staff had provided her with an initial draft, but she took one look at the talking points and she knew that she had to change them. What they gave her didn’t sound like _her_ at all, and there was no way she would remember the speech if she left it as it was.

“I…I can’t remember.” And it horrified her to say this, but she really couldn’t. It had only been a few months since she became the champion, but already it was taking over her life. “I think before I became a trainer, I used to…I used to read. Then when I set off on the Gym Challenge, I spent a lot of time with my pokemon, getting to know them. And I _like_ that, don’t get me wrong, but ever since then my life has revolved around pokemon and being the champion and I can’t even begin to imagine what else I could be doing.”

She had no idea why she was telling all this to Raihan, of all people. Would he even understand? He was the strongest Gym Leader in the League. One of his main goals was to beat Leon, his rival, the former champion. He was someone who lived and breathed being a pokemon trainer – he wouldn’t see any problem with the kind of life she led now, and she felt slightly guilty that she was even thinking of other hobbies and interests. As the champion, she was supposed to devote her life to pokemon. Wasn’t she?

But he was looking at her with something almost akin to sympathy in his eyes and she swallowed, suddenly unable to meet his gaze. She didn’t know why, but she felt _shame_ and she hated how it made her chest tighten, her fists clench, her eyes sting. “It’s really tough in the beginning. I know. We all went through that.” She heard his voice and hesitantly, she looked back up – there was a smile on his face, a look so _understanding_ that she could hardly believe it came from Raihan. “When you’re a part of the League, people look up to you. There are expectations you have to live up to. But after a while, those expectations swallow you whole and you lose yourself trying to prove that you’re capable. People want things from you, and they don’t think about the fact that at the end of the day, the League – we’re all humans too, and we’re fallible. We aren’t perfect.”

Her breath hitched. “But I don’t want to let people down. My dream is to take the League to brand new heights. Make sure the trainers of Galar are recognised as the best all over the world.” She couldn’t bring herself to look at him. “And I won’t be able to do that if I spend any time at all on myself. It’s a sacrifice, but eventually, it’ll pay off, right?”

She wasn’t sure. She knew she ought to be, but her words came out sounding more like a question, almost a plea. She desperately wanted someone to tell her what to do.

Raihan sighed. “That’s not your dream.” His voice was strangely quiet, and she looked up at him, surprised – he sounded almost tired. “That’s Leon’s dream. His goal was to ensure Galar became a force to be reckoned with. And while that is a noble cause,” his teal gaze met hers, “what’s _your_ dream, Gloria? What do _you_ want to do as the champion?”

Gloria didn’t have an answer to his question. Her dream? Her goal? She never thought too much about it. After a very brief orientation, she had been thrust into her champion duties, into a world that was entirely different from what she was familiar with. She clung on to Leon’s words like a lifeline – _“We need to empower Galar’s trainers! We need to prove to the rest of the world that our trainers, our region, is the best!_ ” – and never once had she questioned why she was doing this, or if this dream was one that she herself wanted.

It sounded perfect, didn’t it? It was a good goal, something worthy of the champion. Was she even allowed to detract from it, to wish for something different? Leon believed in both trainers and pokemon working and improving together while having a champion time. Could she believe in something else? Leon had been the champion for so long, his mantra never-changing – it felt almost blasphemous to be thinking about possible alternatives.

“Think about it.” Raihan looked back at his phone. “And think about what you like to do. What’s your identity, Gloria? Other than Gloria the new champion, Gloria the pokemon trainer? I know, a bit strange coming from me.” He smiled. “But even I have a life. And it’d really be a damn shame if you burn yourself out before I can come to claim your title.”

She rolled her eyes, his comment undoing all the tension that had been building up in her shoulders. “So, at the end of the day you just want to beat the champion,” she teased, secretly feeling relieved. This banter was something she was more familiar with. His earlier words, his questions that had provoked deep-seated anxiety within her – she didn’t want to think about that. “And here I was, thinking you were concerned for my well-being.”

“Who said that I wasn’t?” He looked her straight in the eye, and she froze, unable to turn away. His eyes were such an intense colour. “You might be someone I want to defeat in battle Gloria, but you’re also a friend. And I can’t in good conscience just watch you trudge through your day with no idea why you’re doing what you’re doing.”

There was a moment of silence, and she fidgeted in her seat, wondering how she ought to respond to that. Laugh it off? Thank him? Promise to do better? It was like seeing a side to him that she’d never seen before, and she didn’t know how to react. And he said she was a friend. Was she? They never really talked before this, just the usual obligatory small chat during League meetings. “Uh. Thanks?” she finally managed, mentally kicking herself for sounding like an idiot. He just grinned, flashing his canine, and her stomach dipped.

“I guess I shouldn’t hold you back from work. You’re probably busy. And I _should_ go and see Nessa,” he mumbled, and Gloria wondered about the flicker of worry she saw on his face, an emotion that passed so quickly that she would have missed it if she hadn’t been looking at him. He glanced up and caught her staring. “What?”

“Nothing. Just curious about what’s up between you and Nessa.” She said this lightly, not wanting to sound like she was digging for information – he already mentioned that there was nothing to be concerned about, and it wasn’t like Gloria was interested in gossip. As long as whatever was going on between Raihan and Nessa didn’t affect the workings of the League, she was comfortable with not knowing. Well, mostly comfortable anyway.

Raihan slipped his phone into the pocket of his hoodie. “Ah. You really want to know?” He seemed to be considering, and Gloria blinked, surprised – she had expected him to shrug her question off immediately. “Maybe I’ll give you a hint next time. Or maybe I won’t. Who knows, right?” he laughed, getting up from his chair, and Gloria followed, frowning at him. His smile softened. “Nessa and I have known each other for a long time. Longer than I’ve known Leon, even. And once upon a time, I did something that even I’ll admit was pretty stupid. Ever since then it just – it always feels like we’re walking on eggshells around each other, and I don’t really know how to deal with it.” He shrugged. “But it’s no biggie.”

“Apologising didn’t work?” she asked, falling into step beside him. She was intrigued now. Nessa was strong-headed and proud, but not arrogant, and she was always gracious and kind, especially to her trainers. She couldn’t imagine Nessa not forgiving Raihan when he was willing to say sorry to her. Raihan looked a little uncomfortable.

“You know how sometimes you accept an apology because everyone expects you to, but deep down you feel like it’s not enough?” he asked. Gloria nodded. “Well, it’s something like that, I guess. And…” he sighed. “I really was stupid. I just don’t like to think too much about that, so. Nessa wouldn’t even have invited me to do the shoot with her if there was someone else available. But I can’t help wanting to get on her nerves, she’s so uptight.”

“Right.” She didn’t particularly get why Raihan would want to purposely provoke someone, but she wouldn’t comment on it. “Are you heading to Hulbury now?”

He nodded. “Yeah, I should suck it up and talk to her. Though I _really_ don’t like seeing her.” He frowned. “She just reminds me of all the things I did wrong when I was a kid.”

Gloria knew better than to ask. They parted ways in front of the pokemon centre and as she boarded her Flying Taxi back to Wyndon, she found herself turning Raihan’s words over in her mind. What did she want to do as Galar’s Champion? What goal did she have for the future? What identity did she want to claim besides that of a pokemon trainer?

She wasn’t sure. But maybe it was about time she sat down to have a think about it.


	5. Chapter 5

Surprisingly, it didn’t take very long to cut down the number of applicants. When she got back to Wyndon, the first thing she did was talk to the League staff about her situation, and some of them immediately got to work looking through the profiles.

She realised then that submitting a resume didn’t always mean an interview. Watching the League staff tear through the applicants was a sobering experience. Some of the profiles weren’t even looked at – the staff member would glance through their form and, based on the quality of their writing, decide whether or not their resume was worth opening.

Gloria always wondered why job openings usually asked you to fill up a form _and_ attach a resume when the resume could answer most of the questions. Now she knew, and she idly thought about some of her non-trainer classmates back in Postwick. She wondered if it was difficult for them to get jobs. Being a pokemon trainer certainly seemed a lot easier.

But she understood that not every trainer got as far as she did, and for some people, it just didn’t make sense to try if they didn’t think they would be successful. She sighed, her gaze flitting all over the room – it was silent save for the sound of typing and clicking. Hopefully, by the time her staff had gone through the whole pool, it would have narrowed down to a more reasonable number. Then she’d have to set up interviews. _That_ was the scary part.

The glass door swung open and Leon walked in, whistling. “Hey, Gloria.” He sat next to her, noticing her glum expression. “Stressing over the position? Actually, I didn’t think it would be _this_ popular,” he commented. “Even I didn’t get so many applicants.”

“How am I supposed to decide who would be a good secretary and who wouldn’t?” she asked, lifting her head. “I barely even know how to function in an office environment. And this could decide someone’s _livelihood_ ,” she emphasised. Okay, maybe she was being a little overdramatic, but for all she knew to someone else, this job could mean the difference between having food and shelter or being cast onto the streets. How was she supposed to deal with _that_?

“You’re overthinking things.” Leon shook his head. “Sure, jobs are important, but even if someone gets turned down, they’ll find another job. It’s not as if your opening is the last one in the world,” he reminded her. She jiggled her knees, watching her legs bounce up and down. “It’d probably be a while before they get to you, anyway. After your staff clean up the list, the remaining candidates will be vetted by a panel first, and whoever is left after that will be interviewed by you. You won’t see that many people.”

Gloria blinked, surprised. “A panel?” she echoed. That was the first time she had heard of this. “Who will be on this panel? And is it really necessary?” She frowned. It all seemed so bureaucratic. In truth, she wished she could just ask one of her friends to work with her. It would be easier to work with friends. And she wouldn’t have to worry about building trust or rapport. But Marnie and Bede were Gym Leaders and Hop was training under Sonia.

“Of course. You’re a young champion and you have no experience with office politics. You really think the League will allow you to just pick someone without any guidance?” Leon shook his head again. “The panel will be made up of the former champion and two Gym Leaders. I haven’t thought much about who to pick, but I have some people in mind.”

She wondered who. Maybe Kabu and Melony? They seemed like they would know exactly what to look out for. “Well, I’m sure you know what you’re doing,” she answered. Leon gave her a blinding grin and clapped her back, making her wince.

“You’re in safe hands!” he told her. She nodded, rubbing her back – Leon sometimes seemed to forget how strong he was. “I know I might be rubbish at directions but for most other things, I’m surprisingly decent.” And _that_ didn’t sound reassuring in the slightest.

“Want to tell me who you have in mind for the panel?” she asked, curious. Leon raised an eyebrow and thought about it for a moment, then he sank back into his seat.

“I guess there’s no harm in telling you. Not like you being aware of who the panellists are will influence their decision in any way,” he said. “I was thinking of Piers and Raihan. I know, Piers isn’t exactly a Gym Leader anymore, but he was leading Spikemuth for a good number of years and he’s pretty experienced with handling all the administrative stuff.”

Gloria’s look of surprise wasn’t because he mentioned Piers, though. “Raihan?” she said. Leon nodded, a bemused look on his face. “Why Raihan? I thought Kabu would be a good choice. Raihan seems…” She hesitated, wondering what word she should use to describe him. She almost wanted to say sloppy, but she thought back to the conversations they had recently, and she couldn’t in good conscience say the word. It wouldn’t do him justice.

“Like he doesn’t care about his work?” Leon supplied. Gloria shrugged. She wasn’t the one who said it, so she didn’t feel too bad. He chuckled. “He does come off like that, doesn’t he? But Raihan can be surprisingly detail-oriented. When you look at all his battles, it’s quite obvious. He _is_ the only one who ever came close to beating me, after all – well, before you came along.” Gloria paused, considering Leon’s words.

She supposed the way Raihan paired his pokemon during double battles and made use of weather effects was far from messy. But that didn’t mean anything. “Pokemon battles are battles, though,” she reasoned. “It’s not the same as paperwork and such, right?”

“The same principle applies. Raihan _does_ run one of the biggest stadiums in Galar, after all,” Leon pointed out. “Anyway, no matter what you think about his suitability, it all still depends on whether or not he’s willing to help out. It’s not exactly part of his official League duties, so he’ll have to work out his schedule and possibly eat into his downtime. He might not want to be on the panel, and if so, we can look for someone else.”

She felt a little pang in her chest and wondered what it meant. “Sure. I propose Kabu if Piers or Raihan decline.” Leon sighed and nodded, reaching out to ruffle her hair. She waved his hands away, smoothing her hair back down – she wasn’t that much younger than Leon, but he still treated her like a kid. Was it because she was friends with Hop?

“You have a pretty good impression of Kabu, don’t you?” Leon asked. She paused and thought about it – she supposed she did. Kabu seemed like the stern, disciplined type. She thought he was dependable and conscientious, and he wouldn’t break a promise.

“I just think he’d be really good when it comes to interviewing people. And maybe I’d like to have my secretary embody some of his qualities,” she answered. Leon made a face, but he didn’t comment. “Why? You don’t like him or something?” she asked.

“No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just that when it comes to working matters, Kabu and I don’t always see eye-to-eye,” Leon laughed, and it was a rich, warm sound. It was comforting in the same way Hop’s smile always made her feel like she was coming home. “Of course, he’s a great Gym Leader. They all are. And you learn how to manage your professional differences.”

“I still feel so young.” Gloria ground her heels into the floor, her fingers gripping her seat. “I know I’m not _that_ young. Like, I’m not a child anymore. There are lots of trainers who started their journey much younger than I did – you’re one of them,” she added. Leon’s golden eyes were fixed on her, and he simply waited for her to continue. “But I feel like I was thrust into this role without really having a chance to figure out who I am, you know? It’s weird, but…Hop and Marnie and even Bede…they seem to know exactly what they’re doing.” Her shoulders hunched a little. “And I can’t even do anything without your help.”

Raihan’s words were making her think. Maybe she was thinking too much. But even if she didn’t _want_ to think, deep down she knew he was right. She couldn’t just keep going on in this role, parroting the words of the man who had come before her. She admired Leon, and she wanted to be like him someday – though minus the bad sense of direction and his signature pose – but she knew that she wouldn’t, _couldn’t_ , be him. She had to be herself.

She felt warm fingers touch her chin and he turned her head to face him, his gaze studying her intently. “Don’t be so self-defeating.” He frowned at her. “You made it to the Champion Cup, and you managed to beat _me_. Don’t make yourself sound like a one-hit wonder. You weren’t born a pokemon trainer but look where you are now! Who says you won’t be able to learn just as quickly here?” he asked. She felt her face flush.

He was very close. A little too close. She was surprised that none of the staff members were staring at them yet. “Um…” Her voice came out squeaky, and she cringed. “I guess that I just got too used to, um, battling with my…my pokemon…” She was stumbling over her words now. How embarrassing. “Battling was never really, uh – it was never really _hard_.”

Leon thought for a moment. “How about math?” he asked. She just blinked, taken aback by what he said. _Math_? “You studied math, right? In school? Were you any good at it?”

“Good enough to be able to come up with a budget, I guess. Why?” She couldn’t see where this was going. Leon smiled, and when his face was this close it was very distracting. Leon was pretty good-looking, she’d grant him that, but he was such a dorky older brother figure that she just kind of ignored his attractiveness. It felt _wrong_ to even think about Leon that way.

But it was still awfully distracting. “Well, when you were a wee kid, your teachers would teach you how to count, right? And then as you progressed, you learnt about…whatever else you learn in school. But you get my drift. Even if things _start_ easy, they don’t stay like that. And maybe you’re good at one thing, but not another.” To her relief, he let go of her face, his hands gesturing as he attempted to make his point. “What I want to say is, don’t just automatically diss yourself for not being good enough, because very few people ever _start_ good enough, and honestly, innate talent alone isn’t enough to get far. It boils down to effort and hard work as well.”

He was rambling and she still didn’t fully understand what he meant but she could kind of tell what he was trying to get at, and she appreciated the effort. “Thanks, Lee. I feel better now.” And she wasn’t lying – the fact that Leon, the former champion who had way more important things to do with his time than to just sit here and talk to her, was willing to try and cheer her up meant a great deal to her. “I should just take things one step at a time.”

Leon nodded. “That’s right! And _eventually_ , you’ll get used to it. Give yourself a few more months. And the League is here to support you if you need help.” He gave her another blinding smile, though this time she had to look away, her face turning warm. It was weird, thinking about how close he had been to her just now. Was he always this casual? Did she just not notice it before? Was it weird that she was only noticing his closeness _now_?

She was eighteen, turning nineteen soon. And he had to stop treating her like a child. It was one thing to be ruffling her hair and poking her cheek and draping his arm around her shoulders when they were younger. But things were different now. She had grown up.

But she glanced at him again and thought it was nice to be treated like someone’s kid sister every once in a while. It was nice to pretend that she didn’t have responsibilities.

* * *

Her apartment in Wyndon had a great view of the entire city. She moved here a few weeks after she became the champion, and she hadn’t had time to unpack or decorate, so the place was still pretty spartan. She sighed, flopping down onto her couch.

This place would look so much nicer if she could find the energy to get down to business and just…do something about it. It was a nice apartment, honestly. She had been flushed with cash and she impulsively bought a penthouse apartment because hey, she was the champion now and she could do whatever she wanted! Then she learnt about things like mortgage and monthly payments and now she was kicking her past self for being a dumb, reckless idiot. It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford it, but…still. Ouch.

And it was just so much wasted potential. Deciding she had moped alone in the darkness for long enough, Gloria got up and switched on the light, exhaling as she looked around her bare living room. The only things here were her couch, a short wooden table and a rug she had hastily tossed on the floor. Everything else was in cardboard boxes but even then, she didn’t have a lot of boxes. The plan had been to go and buy some furniture and other things for her house. She hadn’t gotten around to doing so yet. There was no motivation.

She recently tried following a bunch of home decoration Rotogram accounts in the hopes they would shame her into finally doing something about her bare apartment, but all she did was scroll through their feeds, think about how _she_ could be living in a place like that, then go back to doing her work. Maybe she would finally get somewhere if she took a look during her downtime, though. Lying on her couch, she idly opened the app.

She scrolled through her feed, double-tapping on photos posted by her friends and the other Gym Leaders. Hop had posted a photo of his Cinderace – _like_. Melony had posted a photo of herself eating ice cream with Gordie, who looked almost embarrassed to be seen with his mother – _like_. Bede had posted a photo of himself training with Hatterene, which she bet was actually uploaded by Opal – _like_. Milo had posted a photo of himself running after his herd of Wooloo – _like_. Raihan had posted – wait. Raihan had posted a photo?

Didn’t he _just_ post something in the afternoon? He usually didn’t double-post. It was a picture of the night sky, the moon shining round and bright. What surprised her wasn’t the fact that the photo looked really good for a night shot – Gloria acknowledged the number of times she tried to take a nice picture of the moon and ended up with a blurry little dot for all her troubles – but rather that Raihan posted something that wasn’t his face. Or a sandstorm.

 _Sometimes life can feel like shit but you just gotta roll with things and see where that takes you_. Wow, how cryptic. What was up with that man? She scanned through the comments and saw hordes of concerned fans asking Raihan if he was okay. She couldn’t blame them for that – it _was_ pretty out of the ordinary for him to post a photo like this. Or to write a caption so moody. Raihan’s Rotogram captions were usually either excited, triumphant or downright self-indulgent. Sometimes it was a mixture of all three.

Okay, whatever. She shouldn’t care. She was on Rotogram to look at home design pages, and look, she was already distracted. If she couldn’t even get this right, then how was she supposed to do _anything_ in life? Decisively, she swiped away from his profile, looking through the pages she had followed. She scrolled for a while, but she found that she couldn’t focus – she just kept thinking about Raihan’s Rotogram post. Granted, for all she knew it could simply be him changing things up on his feed…but what if it _wasn’t_?

Her curiosity was killing her. And she didn’t want to admit it, but a small part of her was concerned too. This wasn’t normal. She hesitated, her fingers hovering over his name on her phone – they had a text conversation going, but it was only because during one League meeting he was late, and she asked him where he was. Besides that, they didn’t chat or anything. Would it be weird if she suddenly messaged him out of nowhere?

What would Leon do in this situation? She closed her eyes – well, actually that was a pretty stupid question. Raihan was his best friend. Of course, Leon would text him. What about Hop then? If she uploaded a cryptic post on Rotogram, would Hop text her about it?

Yes, he would. Because they were friends, and he cared about her. Though this assumed Hop noticed her post since he was rarely on the app. His Cinderace picture today was his first upload in a few months. Either way, friends cared, right? And Raihan said she was a friend…she exhaled. She was already at this point. She might as well send that text.

 **Gloria:** hey. u ok?

 **Gloria:** saw ur post on rotogram and thought u sounded a bit down

 **Gloria:** but no worries if ur fine, just checkin

It sounded casual enough. She told herself not to overthink things – Raihan wouldn’t think she was a creep or a stalker or _whatever_ just because she noticed his photo. They followed each other, for Arceus’ sake. It wasn’t that surprising, right? But her heart was thudding in her chest, and part of her already regretted sending him those messages. What if he didn’t reply? What if he thought she was being weird or something? What if, what if –

Her phone vibrated and she almost dropped it in her surprise. He had already replied.

 **Raihan:** yo thx 4 the msg

 **Raihan:** its k nth much just feelin some things

She sighed. It was good that he was fine, then. She had been concerned for nothing. She hummed to herself as she went back to Rotogram – it was kind of _nice_ to get a text back from him, though she didn’t understand why. It was probably just because Raihan was super popular and she was just…her. Sure, she had followers and fans, but people only liked her because she was the champion. She wasn’t the least bit charismatic.

Raihan was different. He had _presence_. He had a lazy smile and gorgeous eyes and when he was battling, he blazed with passion – he was nothing like her. She bet that he would still be as popular as he was now even if he wasn’t a Gym Leader. Though she couldn’t imagine what Raihan would be if not a Gym Leader. A model like Nessa? Maybe.

Her phone buzzed again, and she saw that Raihan had sent her another text.

 **Raihan:** um ik its weird but can i like call u

She blinked. He wanted to call her? What about? She could hear her heart pounding in her chest. She was tempted to say no because the thought of being on a call with _Raihan_ gave her anxiety, but she reminded herself that they were supposedly friends and Hop wouldn’t bail on her even if he didn’t want to talk at the moment, so she shouldn’t do that either.

 **Gloria:** uh ya sure i guess haha

Barely seconds had passed before her phone began to buzz and she saw that Raihan was calling. She swallowed and accepted the call, her heart in her throat. “Hey.” His voice sounded a little different over the phone, but it was still unmistakeably Raihan, the man so many girls screamed for when he appeared on the pitch – it was him and he was on the other end of the phone. Talking to her. “Sorry for calling you this late but…yeah.”

“No, it’s fine,” she answered, proud that her voice was steady. Her hands were damp. Gloria didn’t really like picking up calls, but she hadn't had much choice ever since she began working. It was starting to get better, it really was, but Raihan was…well, Raihan. And she didn’t think she would ever get used to Raihan. “So, what’s up?”

He sighed. “I said sorry to Nessa. I mean, I know it was the right thing to do,” he started, and she listened, surprised that he was willing to confide in her. At least it sounded like he was confiding. “And weirdly she was pretty chill about it, but she said something that just made me think. Maybe I’m just…winging things. Maybe I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m not sure. I want to believe I’ve come a long way from what I used to be, but did I, really?”

He sounded vulnerable. It was strange listening to him talk like this. She was so used to his confident drawl and that playful little glimmer in his teal eyes. She never thought there might be this other side to him. She didn’t think he ever felt anything but sure of himself. “What did Nessa say? If you don’t mind me asking, of course.”

“Nah, it’s fine. I don’t mind telling you.” He paused. “She said that no matter how far I think I’ve gone, in the end, I’m still the same little boy who set off on a journey so many years ago, and I haven’t changed at all since then. That’s why I still can’t beat Leon.”

 _Ouch_. “That’s…really harsh,” she commented, her voice quiet. “Especially coming from Nessa.” Which was another thing she couldn’t imagine – Nessa being anything but lovely and gracious. Sure, she was stubborn, and she hated to lose. But Nessa wasn’t a sore loser. At least not from what she had observed. “Why is she so upset at you?”

Raihan chuckled. “Trust me, I’ve heard worse from her.” Then his voice quietened a little. “It’s the only time what she said has stuck, though. I can’t help but wonder if she’s right.” She could practically see Raihan shrugging. “I mean, I know I’m good at what I do. And that’s fine. But…maybe I haven’t changed all that much. Maybe that’s why I feel so trapped sometimes. Like no matter how hard I try I can’t break past this _wall_ between me and Lee. And it sucks, you know." He exhaled. “Sorry about unloading all that on you.”

“It’s okay.” She thought over his words, leaning her head against the arm of her couch. “I don’t know what’s the story between you and Nessa, and I can’t tell you for sure if she’s right…but I believe you’ve changed since then. Everyone changes.” She wasn’t sure if her words made sense, but Raihan seemed to be paying attention, so she barrelled on.

“When I first started my journey, I wasn’t sure if I’d change either. I didn’t even know if I could get to Wyndon. But I did. And that’s because I had friends and people who supported me and cared for me. Hop helped me a lot as a rival, and he gave me lots of encouragement…and I think if it weren’t for you, maybe Leon wouldn’t be where he is now either.” She sighed. “I’m rambling. But yeah. Anyway. When I adapted to Hop’s strategies, he would change things up to counter me, and from there we learnt, and together we grew. You’ve come this far as a Gym Leader. You must have improved a lot as well.”

Raihan laughed, a deep, throaty sound that sent a shiver through her. It was the kind of laugh that wasn’t just _heard_ – it was felt, and she felt it indeed, all the way to her toes. “Gloria, you know, you’re kind of cute when you go on like that. Half of that didn’t really make sense, but I feel better anyway.” He paused. “I’m glad we could talk. It helped take my mind off things. But I shouldn’t keep you up – I’m sure little miss champ is busy tomorrow.”

“I guess,” she mumbled, still taken aback by the fact that he called her cute. Did he seriously think she was cute? “There’s never a day the champ isn’t busy.”

“You could always give _me_ the title.” She imagined him winking as he said that and she laughed, shaking her head. “Good night, Gloria. Sweet dreams.” His voice softened and she felt a little pang in her chest – after she said goodbye to him, she clutched her phone to her heart and wondered about the warmth she felt spreading throughout her body.

It was nice, this feeling. She looked at her phone, its screen still showing her conversation with Raihan. She allowed herself a small smile, then she cleared her throat and clapped her hands. She had procrastinated long enough. It was about time she properly looked through those home decoration accounts and picked up some stuff for her house.


End file.
